DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 17-20 are allowed.
The following is an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance: Closest available prior art does not teach or render obvious positioning wifi and GPS antenna in such manner in order to reduce interference.
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claim(s) 1, 10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over
D1 CN 113442836 A.(as evidenced by D3 DE 102019104465 A1 ) in view of D01 US 20220075030 A1
Regarding claim 1 D1 teaches
1. A work machine comprising:
a machine frame;(fig. 3 1100)
a component box(100) attached to a roof of the machine frame;(fig. 3)
a first lidar sensor(126) located at a front corner of the component box; and
a second lidar(127) sensor located at a back corner of the component box on an opposite side of the component box than the first lidar sensor.
wherein the second lidar sensor positioned to minimize any interference from the component box or the machine frame(126 faces opposite to 128 and hence minimizes interference )
but does not explicitly teach
second lidar sensor is mounted outside of the component box on a bracket extending from a back wall of a main body of the component box
Although D1 does not teach placement as claimed it is just a matter of simple placement of the components which is obvious to one of ordinary skills in the art.
D01 teaches
a second sensor(106b) located at a back corner of the component box(101) on an opposite side of the component box than the first lidar sensor(104b), wherein the second lidar sensor(106b) is mounted outside of the component box(101) on a bracket(102a) extending outwardly from a back wall of a main body of the component box(101 fig. 2), wherein the bracket positions the second lidar sensor external to and spaced apart from an outer surface of the main body of the component box(fig. 2) and above the machine frame(fig. 1 106b is above vehicle rooftop) such that the second lidar sensor is [[and]] positioned to minimize any interference from the component box or the machine frame.(fig. 1 106b faces out of rooftop and component box and therefore does not have any or have minimum interference from those parts. )
It will be obvious to one of ordinary skills in the art to modify teachings taught by D1 with teachings by D01 in order to place multiple sensors with different FOV and therefore scan surrounding of the vehicle .
10. A work machine comprising:
five cameras coupled to the component box to provide 360 degree visual coverage;(fig. 3)
wherein the five cameras include a first camera on a front corner of the component box, a second camera on an opposite front corner of the component box from the first camera, a third camera on one side surface of the component box, a fourth camera on a second side surface of the component box, opposite the third camera, and a fifth camera at a back end of the machine frame and coupled to the component box.(fig. 3)
although D1 does not explicitly teach
a fifth camera separate from the component box and mounted to the machine frame at a back end of the machine frame and coupled to the component box by a wire extending from the fifth camera to the component box. It is just matter of the placement of the detectors on the vehicle and can be considered simple design modification in order to achieve desired field of view and connection by the wire is just simple data/power communication means.
D01 teaches
Wherein the fifth camera is mounted to the machine frame external to and rearward of the component box to provide visual coverage of an area behind the work machine.(fig. 1, 2)
It will be obvious to one of ordinary skills in the art to modify teachings taught by D1 with teachings by D01 in order to place multiple sensors with different FOV and therefore scan surrounding of the vehicle .
3. The work machine of claim 1, wherein the first and second lidar sensors are positioned so that there is a 360 degree lidar sensor coverage of an environment around the work machine when the work machine is unloaded.(fig. 3 and text 360 degree coverage)
4. The work machine of claim 1, further including a plurality of cameras coupled to the component box to provide visual coverage of an environment around the work machine.(fig. 3)
5. The work machine of claim 4, wherein the plurality of cameras include five cameras located to provide 360 degree coverage.( fig. 3)
6. The work machine of claim 5, wherein the five cameras include a first camera on a front corner of the component box, a second camera on an opposite front corner of the component box from the first camera, a third camera on one side surface of the component box, a fourth camera on a second side surface of the component box, opposite the third camera, and a fifth camera at a back end of machine frame and coupled to the component box.(fig. 3)
11. The work machine of claim 10, further including one or more lidar sensor on the component box.(fig. 3)
12. The work machine of claim 11, wherein the one or more lidar sensors includes a first lidar sensor located at a front corner of the component box; and
a second lidar sensor located at a back corner of the component box on an opposite side of the component box than the first lidar sensor.(fig. 3)
13. The work machine of claim 12, wherein the first and second lidar sensors are positioned so that there is a 360 degree lidar sensor coverage of an environment around the work machine when the work machine is unloaded.(fig. 3 and text)
Claim(s) 2, 7, 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over D1.
Although D1 does not explicitly teach
2. The work machine of claim 1, wherein the first and second lidar sensors are the only lidar sensors on the component box.
It is just a matter of the design choice and sensor detection coverage choice.
7, 14 The work machine of claim 1, wherein the second lidar sensor is mounted on bracket extending from a back wall of a main body of the component box.(matter of design choice for easy mounting)
8, 15 The work machine of claim 1, further including a plurality of antennas on the component box arranged and positioned to avoid interference.(D1 teaches satellite antenna(32) but does not teach plurality antennas)
It would be obvious to one of ordinary skills in the art at the time of filing to modify teachings by D1 to use plurality antennas to set up communication, radio and other components.
Claim(s) 9, 16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over D1 and D01 in view of D2 US 20170305360 A1.
Regarding claim 9 D1 does not teach but D2 teaches
a machine frame;(fig. 3)
a component box attached to a roof of the machine frame; (fig. 3)
a first lidar sensor located at a front corner of the component box; (fig. 3)
a second lidar sensor located at a back corner of the component box on an opposite side of the component box than the first lidar sensor; (fig. 3)
five cameras located to provide 360 degree coverage, wherein the five cameras include a first camera on a front corner of the component box, a second camera on an opposite front corner of the component box from the first camera, a third camera on one side surface of the component box, a fourth camera on a second(fig. 3)
side surface of the component box, opposite the third camera, and a fifth camera at a back end of the machine frame and coupled to the component box; and(fig. 3)
9. The work machine of claim 8, wherein the plurality of antennas includes a first 2.4 GHz antenna mounted on a back end of the component box, a 900 MHz antenna positioned on a back end of the component box, a GPS receiver located on a bracket extending from a back surface of a main body of the component box, and a 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz Wi-Fi antenna located on the bracket extending from a back corner of the main body of the component box.[0028]
It would be obvious to one of ordinary skills in the art at the time of filing to modify teachings by D1 with teaching by D2 in order to establish positioning and communication with servers.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HOVHANNES BAGHDASARYAN whose telephone number is (571)272-7845. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 7am - 5 pm.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Yuqing Xiao can be reached at (571) 270-3603. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/HOVHANNES BAGHDASARYAN/Examiner, Art Unit 3645
Prosecution Insights